


Free Hugs

by dollylux



Category: Football RPF
Genre: First Meetings, Hugs, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-19
Updated: 2014-06-19
Packaged: 2018-02-05 00:27:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,071
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1798822
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dollylux/pseuds/dollylux
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGYO86KwCUc">watch!</a>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	Free Hugs

It's a chilly day in Madrid, not quite warm enough to walk around without a jacket but the sun is out and so is the entire city, or so it seems to Fernando. He shoves his hands into his pockets and trudges on, thinking about homework, about the angry sound of his girlfriend's voice on the phone the night before, on the dinner he's having tonight at his parents' house, on how to make his father smile with pride. He's thinking so much that he doesn't notice that he's walking through Retiro Park, that he's completely bypassing a beautiful spring day in his native city, that the birds are singing and the trees are bursting with green leaves and flowers every color imaginable. He doesn't even notice as he passes a handful of people with white signs held in front of their chests, hopeful smiles on their faces. He finally glances over and sees two people hugging and then two more people hugging, the small crowd full of smiles and some sort of contented happiness, a feeling so foreign to Fernando that he actually pauses in realization, in wonder. His shoulders tense and that familiar, bitter feeling of being left out fills his lungs and he's frowning as he starts to walk again, his shoulders drawn in to shield himself from anything that dared approach, just in case.

With his head down, he doesn't see the face of the person that finally does approach him, only the white sign held in their long hands. He squints to make sure he reads it correctly, he even runs his lips over the words ( _abrazos gratis..._ ), testing their truth. He finally looks up, meeting a pair of warm, hopeful brown eyes and a held-in smile that carves out dimples on a rather lovely boy face. Fernando flushes and nearly cringes for how his heart leaps and then how his blood runs cold. He drops his shoulder and tries to pass the boy but he moves in front of him, gently blocking his path once again. Fernando stops once more, his eyes lifted as he gives a helpless sigh.

"Excuse me," he mutters, hands in fists in his pockets.

"Free hug?" the boy says with that same smile, the sign lifted as if to make it clearer than it already was what he's saying. Fernando looks at the sign and then up at the boy, a tiny twitch of amusement picking at his frown.

"You want to hug me?"

"Yeah," the boy grins, his eyes serene and he gives his hair a toss, sending long, bouncing strands of brown over his broad, lean shoulders. "You look like you need one."

"Do I?" Fernando glances down at himself but only sees his beat-up converse, his ancient jeans. He frowns again but it's rather forced this time in the face of the boy's smile. "No, I think... I think I'm alright. Uh. Thanks, though, man."

"Come on. You could have already hugged me and continued on with your life in this amount of time, right?" The boy leans over and props the sign up against his own leg, freeing up both arms which he extends right out to Fernando. Fernando examines him carefully, noting that he wore just a simple black t-shirt and a decent pair of jeans, that his arms had a few tattoos and that he seemed quite fit, quite beautiful, if he's being honest with himself. He looks around almost shyly before letting out another sigh, stepping forward, his body nearly touching the boy's body. And that boy, being just an inch or so shorter than Fernando himself, pushing himself up onto his tiptoes to make himself just a little bit taller so he can wrap his arms around Fernando's neck and pull him in close, their faces touching each other's shoulders and Fernando nearly gasps for how warm the boy is, how firm and strong and tender he's being and then it hits him like a ton of bricks that he cannot recall the last time anyone had hugged him, had simply hugged him. He returns the hug then, reluctantly at first, as if he's forgotten how to use his arms, how to make a clutching circle with them but he figures it out soon enough because it seems like the boy is built for hugs, born to give and receive them. Fernando wraps his arms around his small waist and lifts him up just a little, burrowing his face in against his neck and he realizes there are tears burning in his eyes. He sniffles softly, his fingers spreading out on the boy's back, terrified suddenly that he's going to let go but he doesn't, he holds onto Fernando as if he can feel the turmoil just underneath his skin, as if he knows how much he truly needs this.

They hug for what seems like hours but in reality it's only a few minutes (which is still quite a long time to hug, really) and Fernando finally gives him a little squeeze that lets the boy know that it's okay if he wants to pull away, so he does. Their eyes meet and Fernando looks away, ashamed of the shine of tears in his eyes, of the vulnerability there, how he was just unraveled by a single hug. The boy smiles again, a burst of a smile and throws his arms around Fernando, giving him a squeeze and a soft, lingering kiss on the cheek which leaves Fernando's face pink all around that spot, a blossom of a blush that the boy reaches up to touch.

"Do you feel better?"

Fernando laughs gently, head still ducked and his hands go back to his pockets.

"Yeah. Yeah, I do, actually. Thank you."

"I'm Sergio. I'll be here later, if you need another one, okay?"

"Okay," Fernando smiles, eyes lifting to meet Sergio's one last time before he starts to walk away, glancing back every few seconds to see him again and again, his chest so much lighter than it had been, his whole body less tense. He turns to look at Sergio just one more time and grins when he sees him waving at him. He looks straight ahead again, doubling his pace to get to the library so he can hurry and get back and maybe work up the courage to ask for a date the next time through the park.


End file.
